The Science of Discworld II

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The Science of Discworld II Page 39

by Terry Pratchett


  congenital amusia 274–5

  consciousness

  Cartesian Theatre 266

  qualia 22

  Consciousness Explained (Dennett) 266

  constants, fundamental 28, 30, 48

  constellations 170

  context, art 275

  cooperation, altruism 213–14, 215

  cornea 268

  corporations, identity 96

  cosmology see universe

  counting, combinatorics 48–9

  cowboys 121, 138

  cows 93, 117

  Crawford, Michael 92

  creation myths 247

  creativity, cultural evolution 94, 107

  creodonts, co-evolution 310

  Crick, Francis 185

  Cro-Magnon man 114

  Cubism 265

  cults 222, 344

  culture

  children’s subculture 115

  cultural evolution 89–100

  cultural identity 96–8

  and evolution 89–90

  global multiculture 250

  importance of storytelling 155, 327

  memetics 330

  music 270–1

  Cumulative Audience Paradox 313–14

  cytosine 52

  D

  ‘Dame à la Capuche’ 275

  dance 265, 269

  dark matter 20

  Darwin, Charles 133, 249

  Davies, Paul 194

  Dawkins, Richard 328, 331

  De Incessu Animalium (Aristotle)241–2

  deafness 154

  Dear, Steven 288

  Dee, John 65, 66, 70, 71, 73, 169

  Deep Throat 304

  definitions, fuzziness 235–6, 330–1

  democracy 98

  Dennett, Daniel 266

  d’Errico, Francesco 131

  Descartes, René 19–20, 76, 77, 266*

  destiny 164–5, 166, 171

  deterministic systems 165, 169, 303–5

  Devil 158

  Diamond, Jared 88

  Diaspora 141

  Dick, Philip K. 312

  dictatorships 98, 311–12

  Dido 46

  digital communications 181–4

  Dinah 139–40

  dinosaurs 312

  The Discworld Companion 207

  Discworld novels

  Carpe Jugulum 341

  The Colour of Magic 166

  Equal Rites 24

  The Fifth Elephant 111–12

  Hogfather 98, 340

  Interesting Times 139–40, 217*

  The Last Continent 135

  The Light Fantastic 139

  Lords and Ladies 43, 96–7, 158, 207, 286, 311–12

  Mort 207

  Pyramids 206, 207, 208

  Reaper Man 205, 207

  Small Gods 136, 139, 207, 208–9, 218–21

  Sourcery 207

  Thief of Time 21*, 302

  The Truth 292

  Wyrd Sisters 323

  diseases 329

  alchemy 67

  parasitic 155

  diversity

  adaptive radiation 133–4

  human 122, 132–3

  divination 66, 168

  DNA 329, 330–1

  Cohen family 141–3

  and evolution 94

  genomes 185–7

  human evolution 88–9

  meaning 188

  mitochondrial DNA 123–4

  phase space 51–4

  polyphyletic species 122

  dogs

  breeds 122, 133

  domestication 117, 118–20

  free will 165

  hunting in packs 94–5

  sense of smell 286

  Dolly the Sheep 31

  domestication of animals 117–21

  Dostoyevsky, Fyodor 221

  drama 282–3, 333, 340–1

  The Driving Force (Crawford and Marsh) 92

  dryopithecines 108

  duality, Cartesian 20

  dynamical systems

  evolution 308–9

  historical dynamic 301–3, 308, 311–12, 327–8

  phase spaces 43–8, 303–4, 305

  re-running systems 311–12

  E

  ears, hearing 268–9, 270, 273, 290

  Earth, shape of 46

  East Anglia 121–2

  echo-location 287–9

  ecology, biospheres 55, 56–7

  economics

  Law of Supply and Demand 51

  phase space 50–1

  teaching with lies 293

  education 291, 293

  lies-to-children 291, 293

  medieval Europe 69

  ‘three R’s’ 69

  eggs, scrambling 190, 191, 194

  Egypt, ancient 120, 169

  Eichmann, Adolf 136, 262, 264

  Einstein, Albert 114, 136, 192, 193–4, 249, 262

  electron-volts 29*

  electrons, models of atom 247–8

  Elements (Euclid) 65

  elephants 116, 117

  evolution 110–12, 308–9

  lungs 110*

  Elixir of Life 66–7

  Elizabeth I, Queen of England 65

  embryos 188, 235, 236

  Emerald Tablet 66

  emergent behaviour

  co-evolution 310

  complex systems 303, 307

  complicity 154–5

  evolution 308–10

  historical dynamic 303, 308, 311–12, 327–8

  re-running systems 311–12

  emotions, art and 275

  empathy 285–6, 289

  empiricism 70

  endorphins 275

  energy

  carbon formation 27, 29–30

  electron-volts 29*

  Laws of Thermodynamics 189–93

  phase spaces 44–8

  potential energy 45

  work cycles 57

  engineering, ancient Greece 70, 237–8, 242, 243

  Enlightenment 76

  Enoch 125*

  entertainment, storytelling as 327

  entropy

  information 189, 192–3

  thermodynamic 189–90, 192–3

  universe 193–6

  epigenetics 185

  essential fatty acids, and human evolution 92

  E.T. 117

  ethics, cloning 31

  Ethics (Spinoza) 77

  Euclid 65

  Euripides 341

  Europe

  Ashkenazi Jews 141

  human evolution 113–14, 122

  music 270

  twentieth-century history 311

  Eve

  existence of 125

  ‘mitochondrial Eve’ 122–4

  pre-formation theory 72

  evil, elimination of 107

  evolution

  adaptive radiation 133–4

  ‘alternate universe’ stories 312

  altruism 213–14, 215

  apes 107–8

  co-evolution 119–21, 310

  competition 214–15

  and complexity 54, 57

  cultural evolution 89–100

  dynamics of 308–9

  elephants 110–12

  extinction 133–4

  genomes 185–6

  gracile and robust forms 109–11, 113

  humans 87–8, 108–9, 112–14

  lying and 284–6

  memes 328–33

  phase space 55

  predictions 309–10

  exformation, context 187

  exotic matter 315

  experiments

  interpreting 197–8

  scientific method 239–41, 243–4, 248

  extelligence

  cultural evolution 89–90, 99

  eliminating evil 107

  future possibilities 166

  memetics 330

  overcommitment strategy 216

  symbiosis and 118

  ‘time-binding’ ability 156, 166

 
extended present, and sense of music 274

  extinction

  genetic diversity 133–4

  Neanderthals 134–5, 137

  eyes

  colour vision 290

  vision 266–8, 273–4

  F

  failure, learning from 78–9

  fairies 158, 247, 343

  fairy stories

  function of 74, 152, 155, 342

  hidden meanings 115–16

  Falla, Manuel de 264

  false narratives 28

  fantasy stories 75

  fatalism 149, 167–8, 171

  Father Christmas 97–8

  fatty acids, and human evolution 92

  feminism, myths 79

  ‘feral’ children 283

  Fermi, Enrico 314*

  Fermi Paradox 314

  feudalism 76

  Feynman, Richard 262

  Feynman diagrams, time travel 315–16

  fiction

  ‘alternate universe’ stories 312–13

  getting inside another person’s mind 282

  time travel 313–14

  see also storytelling

  Figments of Reality (Stewart and Cohen) 89, 119, 136, 174, 288

  films

  background music 262–3, 265

  narrative imperative 341

  ‘primitive’ tribes in 265

  watching 273–4

  finches 133

  Finnegan’s Wake (Joyce) 50*

  fire 57

  Fire Dance (Falla) 264

  First Law of Thermodynamics 189, 190

  fish, adaptive radiation 133–4

  Fisher, Ronald Aylmer 213, 214

  flames 57

  Flintstones 264

  Florida 27

  food, and human evolution 92

  Ford Model T 118

  forest elephants 110–11

  forests 107–8

  fortune-telling 168

  fossils

  apes 107, 108

  hominids 88

  free will 164–6

  animals 165

  laws of physics and 174–5

  paradoxes of 168–9

  tests for 174

  tribalism and 167, 170–1

  Freemasons 71*, 238

  French language 269

  frequencies

  hearing 268

  pitch and harmony 270

  Freud, Sigmund 264

  Fritz, Jonathan 288

  fruit 217*

  fundamental constants, physics 28, 30, 48

  future possibilities

  attitudes to 164–75

  chaos theory 304–5

  cheating predictions 307–8

  determinism 303–4

  free will 165–6

  ‘time-binding’ ability 156, 166, 215

  time travel 313–16

  see also predictions

  G

  gaits, patterns of movement 270

  Galápagos islands 133

  galaxies, and cold dark matter 20

  Galen 67

  Galileo Galilei 242–3, 245

  Gandhi, Mahatma 86*

  Garden of Eden 276

  gardens 153

  gases, thermodynamics 48, 54–5, 56, 189–93, 195–6

  Geffrye Museum, London 134

  general relativity, theory of 314–15

  Genesis 125*

  genetically modified organisms 118

  genetics

  altruism 213–14, 215

  basic unit 330–1

  cloning 31

  Cohen family 141–3

  and culture 93–4

  DNA 51–4, 185–8

  and evolution 94

  human diversity 122, 132–3

  immune system 124–5, 131–2

  mitochondrial DNA 123–4

  Y-chromosome 141, 142–3

  genomes

  DNA phase space 51–4

  human evolution 88

  information 185–7

  meaning 188

  Georgiadis, Nicholas 110–11

  Germany, World War II 311, 312

  Gerrold, David 314

  gibbons 108

  goats 117

  God 171

  images of 342, 344

  as lord of knowledge 236

  monotheism 172, 247

  pantheism 77

  personification of 211–12

  proof of existence 197

  and rules of physical world 77

  Gödel, Escher, Bach (Hofstadter) 187

  gods 205–6

  polytheism 172

  Golan Heights 276

  gold, alchemy 67, 68

  Good Samaritan 116

  gorillas 88, 108, 124, 276

  Gould, Stephen Jay 312–13

  gracile apes 112–13

  gracile forms, evolution 109–11, 113

  Grandfather Paradox, time travel 313, 316

  gravity 73

  cold dark matter 20

  distribution of matter in universe 193–6

  potential energy 45

  relativity 314

  solar system 303

  Greece, ancient 99

  alchemy 66

  engineering 70, 237–8, 242, 243

  plays 341

  Renaissance and 65–6, 69

  Gregorian chants 270

  Grimm Brothers 115, 155

  Grotte Chauvet 275

  group behaviour, cultural evolution 94–5

  guanine 52

  Guardian 273

  Guilds 71*

  guilt 139

  Gulliver’s Travels (Swift) 222

  gypsies 137

  H

  Hamlet (Shakespeare) 271

  Hanging Gardens of Babylon 237

  Haplochromis burtoni 133

  ‘Happy Birthday to You’ 328, 329

  Hardy, Alister 92

  harmony, music 270, 274

  Harris, Rolf 276

  Harrison, Harry 312–13

  Hausa tribe 116–17

  Hawaii 265

  Haydn, Joseph 263

  healing 68

  hearing 268–9, 270, 273, 290

  heat energy 189, 190

  heaven, ‘right way to heaven’ 157

  Heinlein, Robert A. 314

  helium, carbon formation 28–30

  Hell 221, 222

  Heller, Joseph 311*

  heretics 221

  Hermes Trismegistos 66, 72

  Hermeticism 72, 73

  Hero of Alexandria 70

  heroes 157–8

  hidden knowledge 71–2

  Hinduism 169

  history

  ‘alternate universe’ stories 312

  historical dynamic 301–3, 308, 311–12, 327–8

  rules 302–3, 308

  storytelling 309

  teaching with lies 293

  History of Science in China (Needham) 172

  The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (Adams) 304

  Hitler, Adolf 311

  Hivites 139–40

  Hofstadter, Douglas 187

  Hogan, Craig 30

  Hollywood 79, 121, 136, 265, 266

  Holy Wars 222

  homeopathy 71, 72

  hominids 88, 113

  Homo 112–13

  Homo erectus 88, 113, 122, 150

  Homo ergaster 88, 113

  Homo habilis 88, 113

  Homo heidelbergensis 88

  Homo neanderthalensis 88

  Homo rudolfensis 88

  Homo sapiens 32, 88, 113, 122, 150, 342, 345

  Homo sapiens neanderthalensis 113–14

  Homo sapiens sapiens 114

  honey 284

  honour 138

  horns, co-evolution 310

  horoscopes 65, 66

  horses

  bounding 241–2

  co-evolution with humans 121–2

  domestication 117, 118

  trotting 242, 243–4

  hospitals 291

  house-martins 116
<
br />   hover-flies 284

  Hoyle, Fred 29–30

  hula dances 265

  Human Genome Project 185

  humans

  brains 90

  cloning 31

  co-evolution with animals 119–22

  creativity 107

  cultural evolution 89–100

  cultural identity 96–8

  domestication of animals 117–21

  early population size 122–5

  evolution 87–8, 108–9, 112–14

  genetic diversity 122, 132–3

  genome 52–3, 185–6

  importance of storytelling 116–17

  mitochondrial DNA 123–4

  puberty rituals 134–7

  racial differences 122

  regard for children 117

  total number of 52

  use of alternative scenarios 149–51, 155–6

  hunting, dogs 94–5

  hydrochloric acid 66

  hyenas 109

  hypercolumns, visual cortex 267

  hypotheses, scientific method 239–41, 248–9

  I

  ice ages 108

  iconic figures, storytelling 74, 155

  ideas, memes 328–33

  ideologies, memetics 332

  ignorance 72

  illusions, magicians 72

  immortality, Elixir of Life 66–7

  immune system, genetics 124–5, 131–2

  India 107

  music 270

  Indian elephant 110, 111

  infinity 49

  information 182–4

  context 187–8, 192–3

  entropy 189, 192–3

  genomes 185–7

  and meaning 184–5

  universe as 196–8

  Information Age 181–2

  innocence, primitive tribes 264

  innovation

  cultural evolution 94

  genetic evolution 55, 57

  Inquirer 292

  Inquisition 172, 218, 220, 221–2, 245

  intelligence

  and human evolution 89–90, 99

  lies 286

  memetics 330

  interbreeding, species 110, 111

  Internet 96, 329

  Inuit, storytelling 74

  invertebrates, play 119

  invisibility, cold dark matter 20

  Iran 96

  Is God a Virus? (Bowker) 331

  Islam 157

  Israelites 139–40

  J

  Japanese, speech development 269, 290

  Java 88

  jazz 263, 264, 265

  Jehovah 167, 210, 211–12

  Jews

  Cohen family 138–9, 141–3

  Judaism 210–12

  Kabbala 66, 76*

  rituals 136–7

  ‘Shema’ prayer 331*

  verbal ability 137

  journalism 291–2, 325–6

  Joyce, James 50*

  Judaism 210–12

  Judgement Day 72

  jukeboxes 187–8

  justice 340

  K

  Kabbala 66, 76*

  karma 171

  Kauffman, Stuart 54–5, 56–7, 77, 78, 305

  Kelley, Edward 68

  Kenya 275

  Kepler, Johannes 66

  Keynes, John Maynard 239

  kings 89

  Kinsey, Alfred 142

  Kipling, Rudyard 120

  Kismet 171

  knowledge, ontology 211

  Koran 156

  !Kung 132–3, 269

  L

  language

  chimpanzees and 88

  development of 283

  hearing sentences 273

 

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